Watching both their medical insurance balances drop to zero, Dai Xingzhi thought to himself, “A mutual loss?”

The rules immediately flashed through Dai Xingzhi’s mind: “If one party’s medical insurance balance drops to zero, they are deemed to have lost. However, if both parties’ balances drop to zero simultaneously, the fight continues…”

But the next moment, having exhausted all his medical insurance funds, he felt an overwhelming weakness. A slight sway was enough to bring him to his knees.

On the other hand, Bai Zhenzhen wiped her mouth, slowly rose to her feet, and then, with electricity crackling around her body, began to walk step by step towards Dai Xingzhi.

Dai Xingzhi’s heart sank. “After spending 1 million on treatment, she recovered better than me?”

“Does that mean she was less injured than me? How is that possible? She clearly took my full-power strike too!”

A confident smile appeared on Bai Zhenzhen’s lips. Her eyes, flickering with electricity, met Dai Xingzhi’s gaze as she thought, “These wealthy ‘Immortal City Lords’ really don’t… fight as desperately as I do.”

The next moment, Bai Zhenzhen activated her Lightning Step, darting towards Dai Xingzhi like a flash of lightning.

Although Bai Zhenzhen was still considerably injured and not fully healed, Dai Xingzhi’s condition was even weaker and more helpless.

Within a few moves, Dai Xingzhi was knocked off the stage by Bai Zhenzhen, completely losing the match.

Huang Zichou, watching this unfold, sighed inwardly, “This Bai Zhenzhen truly dares to fight. Even though she likely has backing now, she must have originally clawed her way up from the very bottom, from the ranks of the poor.”

“After all, such poor people only have these desperate attempts. Surviving ten or twenty such fights is the only way they get a chance to catch up even a little with the wealthy. That fearlessness and fierce spirit born of poverty cannot be faked.”

Below the stage, Dai Xingzhi replayed every detail of the battle in his mind, finally thinking with a hint of unwillingness, “Was it because I didn’t go all out in that instant?”

But fighting desperately, giving his all, staking everything… these actions went against the teachings Dai Xingzhi had received since childhood, and they were behaviors he had always disdained.

“I actually lost because of this?”

“Could it be that our family’s rules, passed down through generations, are flawed…”

Dai Xingzhi shook his head. “No, that’s not right. I wasn’t careful enough, not cautious enough in this fight. I shouldn’t have allowed myself to get into a desperate situation in the first place.”

Looking at Bai Zhenzhen on the stage, Dai Xingzhi thought, “Woman from outside, if we ever get a chance to fight again, I will surely defeat you.”

As the battle concluded, Bai Zhenzhen immediately sank to the ground the moment she stepped off the stage.

Feeling her internal injuries, she thought, “There’s no way I can fight Yun Jing in the next match, right?”

“But it doesn’t matter. At least I’ve secured a top-two spot this time, which means I can participate in the final round of the Foundation Establishment exam and contend for the Foundation Establishment qualification certificate.”

“So, in that case, I can just forfeit to Yun Jing, can’t I?”

“I wonder how Zhang Yu is doing…”

While Bai Zhenzhen was defeating Dai Xingzhi, in Zhang Yu’s examination hall, the simulated depth of the Dinghai Pillar had reached 300 meters.

The Profound Nether Heavy Water within the Dinghai Pillar had become incredibly heavy at this point, making Yu Xinghan feel as though he was bound by countless iron chains, with each breath becoming heavy and difficult.

Especially his more vulnerable body parts were constantly being compressed by the intense water pressure, making them particularly susceptible to injury.

For instance, Yu Xinghan could feel his ears beginning to ache, as if needles were pricking them.

Additionally, his glabella, throat, and chest cavity were all being continuously squeezed by the Profound Nether Heavy Water.

Yu Xinghan knew this was because the air cavities inside his body and the external Profound Nether Heavy Water had not achieved pressure equilibrium.

“It’s like diving…”

Yu Xinghan took a deep breath from his oxygen mask, then engaged his pectoral muscles, diaphragm, and throat muscles… pushing the inhaled air into his body’s cavities. After rounds of pressurization, he achieved a balance between the air pressure in his internal cavities and the pressure of the external Profound Nether Heavy Water.

“This process requires extreme caution. If the internal gas is over-pressurized, it can easily cause air to rupture delicate internal areas. But if the pressurization is insufficient, it leads to an imbalance, ultimately causing the eardrums to burst from the Profound Nether Heavy Water’s pressure…”

As Yu Xinghan resisted the Profound Nether Heavy Water’s pressure, he flexed his muscles to adjust the internal and external pressure difference, increasingly realizing the difficulty of this environment.

“Not only does one’s physical strength need to be high enough, and the body sufficiently tough, but one also needs to constantly control physical power to actively counter the Profound Nether Heavy Water.”

Yu Xinghan glanced at the other competitors around him. Meng Tao and another participant were, like him, silently resisting the Profound Nether Heavy Water and adjusting their breathing.

However, only Zhang Yu and Ye Lingxiao appeared different.

Ye Lingxiao, in particular, to everyone’s astonishment, pulled off his oxygen mask with a look of distaste, casually opened his eyes, and stood calmly at the bottom of the Dinghai Pillar.

Yu Xinghan was stunned. “Has the effect of his ‘intelligence-lowering’ pill not worn off yet? Is he going to be eliminated just like that?”

Zhang Yu, upon seeing this, also felt a surge of delight. “Haha, did he really make a mistake because his intelligence decreased?”

But soon, everyone realized they were wrong. Ye Lingxiao stood motionless like a statue; despite not having an oxygen mask, he was completely unaffected, as if the surrounding Profound Nether Heavy Water were just air.

Ye Lingxiao tilted his head, thinking, “What should I do next? Just stand here… Is standing here enough? That must be it; the exam probably hasn’t officially begun yet.”

Ye Lingxiao couldn’t help but frown. “No, this exam… what exactly is this exam testing? It can’t just be about standing here.”

Yu Xinghan was startled, watching Ye Lingxiao act as if nothing was wrong. He couldn’t help but analyze, “Did this guy use some kind of cultivation method that allows him to control internal breathing?”

“No, he doesn’t seem to be breathing at all, nor is he adjusting the internal and external pressure difference? Is he resisting the Profound Nether Heavy Water purely with his physical strength?”

“Does that mean this guy has even tempered his body’s most vulnerable parts, like his eardrums, to the point where they can forcefully withstand the Profound Nether Heavy Water?”

A cold breath hitched in Yu Xinghan’s throat at this thought. He then involuntarily felt relieved, grateful that he wouldn’t have to face such a terrifying opponent in next year’s Foundation Establishment exam.

He then looked at Zhang Yu on the other side, who was twisting his body within the Dinghai Pillar, engaging in body refinement cultivation.

Yu Xinghan sighed inwardly, “Alas, among the five of us, I’m the one with the lowest physical strength.”

Meanwhile, Zhang Yu, through repeated physical grueling and the nourishment of his Longevity spiritual energy, felt his physical strength increasing bit by bit.

Especially, the Phoenix Imitation Functional Element he had taken during the first half of the exam was still active.

Waves of medicinal power coursed through his body like flames, stimulating the growth of muscles and bones, and providing phoenix hormones for the repair of physical damage, working alongside his Longevity spiritual energy to heal his body.

What surprised Zhang Yu was that the Profound Nether Heavy Water also enhanced his body refinement effects.

The water pressure pressing in from all sides made him feel as if he were wearing layer upon layer of weighted clothing, causing his body to undergo more intense wear and tear as he practiced the Spring and Autumn Endless Zen.

“On one hand, it intensified the wear on my body; on the other, it boosted my body’s repair. This back-and-forth actually made the body refinement effects of the Spring and Autumn Endless Zen even stronger.”

If the combination of Level 10 Spring and Autumn Endless Zen, the top-tier Body Refinement elixir ‘Phoenix Imitation Functional Element’ for the Qi Cultivation stage, and the Profound Nether Heavy Water could be considered a supreme body refinement condition, then what Zhang Yu was currently experiencing was supreme ×3!

This was because, with his High School Sacred Body, he could amplify the body refinement effects of any Qi Cultivation stage technique by two times, achieving three times the original effect!

Thus, at this moment, Zhang Yu felt his physical body erupt like a volcano during cultivation, surging back and forth with the surrounding Profound Nether Heavy Water, achieving an unprecedented level of efficiency.

“What exhilarating fun!”

“This is simply the best cultivation environment, the strongest cultivation conditions, and the highest cultivation efficiency I’ve ever encountered since coming to Kunxu!”

Physical Strength: Level 9.92!

As every second passed, the simulated depth of the Profound Nether Heavy Water grew deeper and deeper. The pressure and wear Zhang Yu’s body experienced during training became increasingly severe, yet the efficiency of his training continued to rise!

When the depth reached 500 meters, Zhang Yu’s physical strength also increased to Level 9.93.

At this point, every exertion of strength, every twist, made his body feel even heavier, and the training effect further increased with the intensifying pressure of the Profound Nether Heavy Water.

Especially as cultivation became more difficult, the ‘Crippled Ox Self-Sacrifice Heart Technique’ gradually took effect, continuously stimulating his potential.

In contrast to Zhang Yu’s frantic training, Ye Lingxiao remained completely still on the other side, not even breathing. He simply stood calmly at the bottom of the Dinghai Pillar with his arms crossed.

He looked at the “500 meters” display above him and thought, “What does that mean?”

“Wait…”

“I remember now,” he thought. “The Dinghai Pillar and Profound Nether Heavy Water…”

“I’ve long grown tired of these things.”

As his thoughts gradually returned to normal, he slightly moved his ears, pressing them tightly against his head to completely cover his ear canals, thereby resisting the pressure of the Profound Nether Heavy Water.

Techniques like this were already second nature to him.

What was an unprecedented experience and unparalleled cultivation condition for Zhang Yu was simply an ordinary, everyday occurrence for Ye Lingxiao.

Especially given Ye Lingxiao’s formidable physical strength, which had long reached the limit of the Qi Cultivation stage, combined with numerous body-protection techniques, a depth of 500 meters was as easy as a regular dive for him at this moment.

And as the side effects of the Dao-Deciphering Extended-Release Capsule slowly wore off and his thoughts gradually returned to normal, he felt even more at ease.

However, recalling his actions after taking the pill, Ye Lingxiao gradually frowned, a gloomy expression flashing across his face. “This pill actually lowers intelligence?”

But slowly, his frown relaxed. “No, it doesn’t seem to have lowered my intelligence. Rather than lowering intelligence, it seems to have added a parallel thought process. This pill’s side effect might not… be a bad thing after all.”

While Ye Lingxiao was pondering, Yu Xinghan on the other side was nearing his breaking point. Not only did the pressure from the Profound Nether Heavy Water make his bones and muscles creak under compression, but the internal and external pressure balance was also gradually beginning to slip beyond his control.

“Damn it, if I hadn’t worked overtime yesterday, I should have been able to hold on a bit longer today.”

Finally, when the depth reached 511 meters, Yu Xinghan reluctantly chose to give up.

At that moment, Yu Xinghan also made a firm decision: “I need to exercise moderation. I’ve been working too much overtime recently, and it’s starting to affect my studies and cultivation.”

Time continued to tick by.

When the depth reached 900 meters, Zhang Yu’s physical strength had increased to a formidable Level 9.94, marking the fastest rate of body refinement improvement he had ever experienced.

However, at a depth of 900 meters, even Zhang Yu found it difficult to continue cultivating.

Especially as the medicinal power within him gradually dissipated, there were hardly any phoenix hormones left to accelerate his body’s growth and repair.

Instead, the pressure from the Profound Nether Heavy Water became increasingly terrifying, forcing Zhang Yu to exert more physical strength to resist the water pressure and regulate the internal and external pressure difference.

Zhang Yu turned his head to check on the other contestants. Meng Tao had curled his body up, his muscles visibly compressed to almost half their size under the immense pressure.

On the other hand, Ye Lingxiao remained motionless, arms crossed, clearly indicating that the current depth was still far from his limit.

The simulated depth continued to decrease bit by bit, finally reaching 1300 meters.

Zhang Yu felt as if the surrounding Profound Nether Heavy Water had transformed into heavy steel plates, tightly covering his body and crushing his muscles and bones, as if intent on completely flattening him.

Zhang Yu strenuously circulated the muscles throughout his body to resist the overwhelming pressure, but gradually realized that his physical strength was beginning to falter and could no longer function perfectly.

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